‘Done the unthinkable’: HS2 northern leg scrapped, Rishi Sunak confirms in Tory conference speech October 4, 2023 The northern leg of HS2 from Birmingham to Manchester has been scrapped, Rishi Sunak has announced. The Prime Minister confirmed the decision to axe the route as he made his keynote speech at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester today. Sunak said: “I am ending this long running saga. I am cancelling the rest of [...]
Rishi Sunak to defy backlash by axing HS2 route to Manchester October 4, 2023 Rishi Sunak is expected to defy a backlash from Tory colleagues and northern leaders by abandoning the high-speed rail route to Manchester as he seeks to portray himself as a radical reformer. The Prime Minister is expected to use his Conservative conference speech in the northern city to axe the HS2 leg from Birmingham as [...]
Sunak and Hunt may be a tired act but the Tories are quietly confident October 4, 2023 After the drama of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt may seem boring but there's a quiet sense that the Conservative party is in it for the long-term, writes Sasha O'Sullivan
Long-termism makes for good policy, if not a catchy slogan October 4, 2023 As election pitches go, the one that Rishi Sunak is going to try out today is a tad unusual. “You’re all fed up of us, so give us another shot” is not obvious campaigning gold. Yet there may be a nugget in there nonetheless. Sunak’s contention in his speech will be that the country is [...]
Tories ‘absolutely failed’ to lead debate on net zero, says minister October 3, 2023 Nuclear minister Andrew Bowie said that the Conservatives had “absolutely failed” to have a national conversation about net-zero.
The traditional financial system is broken – Bitcoin fixes this October 3, 2023 In an era of fiscal uncertainty, the need for sound money, like Bitcoin, becomes ever more critical, says Susie Violet Ward.
Rishi Sunak refuses to say if HS2 to Manchester is being scrapped – six times October 3, 2023 Rishi Sunak has refused to confirm whether HS2 to Manchester is being scrapped six times while being grilled in a live interview. The Prime Minister insisted to BBC Breakfast he had “absolutely not” given up on the multi-billion pound rail scheme which has dominated the Conservative Party Conference. “We’ve got spades on the ground on [...]
Sunak failed to hand over pandemic WhatsApp messages to Covid inquiry – reports October 3, 2023 Rishi Sunak has told the Covid-19 inquiry that he is unable to provide WhatsApp messages from his time as Chancellor during the pandemic because he failed to back them up, it has been reported. The Prime Minister wrote in his witness statement that he does “not have access” to the messages because he changed his [...]
Conservative Conference Diary: Speed limits on growth October 3, 2023 City A.M.’s reporters bring you the gossip behind the headline speeches at the Conservative Party Conference.
Let’s ditch grand, expensive projects like HS2 and opt for urgent smaller ones October 3, 2023 Even Yes, Minister would have struggled to come up with this one. A major infrastructure project, to Manchester, set to be cancelled, in Manchester, during the government’s party conference. Yet Rishi Sunak could still grasp victory from the jaws of defeat if, as expected, he ditches HS2.Let’s be clear: this is a right sorry mess. [...]